High pressure expansible chamber device

ABSTRACT

2. A FLUID PRESSURE OPERATED DEVICE OF THE EXPANSIBLE CHAMBER TYPE COMPRISING A CASING, A VALVE BLOCK HAVING A FLUID TRANSFER SURFACE, SAID VALVE BLOCK HAVING A PLURALITY OF EXPANSIBLE CHAMBER FEEDING AND EXHAUSTING PASSAGES HAVING OPENINGS IN SAID TRANSFER SURFACE, A VALVE HAVING A FIRST SURFACE ENGAGING SAID TRANSFER SURFACE, SAID VALVE FIRST SURFACE BEING RECESSED TO FORM A (REVERSIBLE) AN INLET (AND EXHAUSTING SECTIONS) SECTION, (REVERSIBLE) AN INLET (AND OUTLET PASSAGES) PASSAGE IN SAID VALVE BLOCK HAVING (OPENINGS) AN OPENING IN SAID TRANSFER SURFACE AND (RESPECTIVE) CONSTANT FLUID COMMUNICATION WITH SAID FEEDING (AND EXHAUSTING SECTIONS) SECTION OF SAID VALVE, SAID VALVE BLOCK INLET PASSAGE AND SAID VALVE BLOCK OUTLET PASSAGE FLUID INLET PATH MEANS, (SAID VALVE BLOCK OUTLET PASSAGE AND SAID VALVE EXHAUSTING SECTION FORMING FLUID OUTLET PATH MEANS,) SAID VALVE BEING CYCLICALLY MOVABLE RELATIVE TO SAID TRANSFER SURFACE WITH SAID FEEDING (AND EXHAUSTING SECTIONS) SECTION THEREOF SEQUENTIALLY FEEDING (AND EXHAUSTING) SAID EXPANSIBLE CHAMBER PASSAGES, MEANS FOR SEQUENTIALLY EXHAUSTING SAID EXPANSIBLE CHAMBER PASSAGES,   SAID VALVE HAVING A SECOND SURFACE ON THE OPPOSITE SIDE THEREOF FROM SAID FIRST SURFACE, A VALVE BIASING PRESSURE CHAMBER FORMED BY AN INTENAL SURFACE OF SAID CASING AND SAID SECOND VALVE SURFACE, PASSAGES MEANS BETWEEN (EACH OF) SAID FLUID INLET (AND OUTLET) PATH MEANS AND SAID PRESSURE CHAMBER (, CHECK VALVE MEANS) FOR (SAID PASSAGE MEANS) ALLOWING FLUID THEREIN TO FLOW (IN ONLY ONE DIRECTION) TO SAID PRESSURE CHAMBER FOR BIASING SAID VALVE TOWARDS SAID VALVE BLOCK TRANSFER SURFACE. (SAID VALVE BIASING PRESSURE CHAMBER HAVING NO OPENINGS OTHER THAN OPENINGS FOR SAID CHECK VALVE MEANS,) SAID VALVE BEING THE ONLY CYCLICALLY MOVABLE MEMBER WITH WHICH PRESSURIZED FLUID IN SAID CHAMBER HAS CONTACT, AND DRIVE MEANS ATTACHED TO SAID VALVE AND EXTENDING IN A DIRECTION AWAY FROM SAID VALVE BIASING PRESSUR CHAMBER, SAID SECOND VALVE SURFACE BEING BETWEEN SAID DRIVE MEANS AND SAID VALVE BIASING PRESSURE CHAMBER.

June 3, 1975 w. B. EASTON Re. 28,441

HIGH PRESSURE EXPANSIBLE CHAMBER DEVICE f Original Filed Jan. 13, 1971 2Sheets-Sheet 1 Jill]. 3, 1975 w, EASTQN Re. 28,441

HIGH PRESSURE EXPANSIBLE CHAMBER DEVICE Original Filed Jan. 15, 1971 2Sheets-Sheet 5 FIG 3 United States Patent;

Re. 28,441 Reissued June 3, 1975 28,441 HIGH PRESSURE EXPANSIBLE CHAMBERDEVI'CE Wayne B. Easton, 3007 W. 96th St. Circle, Bloomiugton, Minn.55431 Original No. 3,687,581, dated Aug. 29, 1972, Ser. No. 106,047,Jan. 13 1971. Application for reissue July 18, 1974, Ser. No. 489,525

Int. Cl. F01c 21/00; F03c 3/00; F04c 15/00 U.S. Cl. 418270 5 ClaimsMatter enclosed in heavy brackets If appears in the original patent butforms no part of this reissue specification; matter printed in italicsindicates the additions made by reissue.

ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE The invention relates to an expansiblechamber type of device which is especially adapted for use with highpressure operating fluids. The device has a valve which directspressurized fluid from an inlet port to the expanding chambers thereofand non-pressurized fluid from the contracting chambers thereof to anoutlet port. A valve sealing arrangement is provided whereby pressurizedfluid is utilized to bias the valve into sealing engagement with a valveblock which contains passages leading to the expanding and contractingchambers. A main feature is that the inlet and outlet ports arereversible from the standpoint that either port may be used as the inletport to obtain a desired direction of rotation without adverselyaflecting the operativeness of the sealing arrangement.

The invention relates to an expansible chamber type of device which isespecially adapted for use with high pressure operating fluids. Suchdevices commonly have a valve which directs pressurized fluid from aninlet port to the expanding chambers thereof and non-pressurized orspent fluid from the contracting chambers thereof to an outlet port.

A sealing arrangement must be provided for and in connection with such avalve to prevent or deter the short circuiting of pressurized fluid fromthe high pressure side to the low pressure side or from the highpressure side through a shaft seal to a point externally of the device.

The expansible chamber device of the present invention is provided witha sealing arrangement in which (1) the high pressure fluid istransferred across only one pair of relatively movable surfaces whichare the surfaces of a valve, (2) the valve surfaces are biased togetherby the pressurized operating fluid, and (3) the inlet and outlet portsare reversible from the standpoint that either port may be used as theinlet port to obtain a desired direction of rotation without adverselyaffecting the operativeness of the sealing arrangement.

The object of the invention is to provide an expansible chamber type ofdevice having a new and improved valve biasing and sealing arrangement.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent fromthe following specification, drawings and appended claims.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view of an expansible chamber type ofmotor, pump, metering device or the like having a new and improvedvalving arrangement in accordance with the invention, taken on line 11of FIG. 2;

FIG. 2 is a transverse sectional view taken on line 22 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary longitudinal sectional view taken on line 3-3 ofFIG, 2; and

FIG. 4 is an enlarged sectional view of a conventional check valve ofwhich a plurality thereof are utilized in the illustrated embodiment ofthe invention.

The drawing illustrates an expansible chamber type of device which willbe referred to herein as a motor, for convenience, but which may be,within the scope of the invention, a motor, a pump, a metering device,or any other type of device of the expansible chamber type.

The illustrated motor comprises three cylindrically shaped casingsections 10, 11 and 12 and disk shaped end cover plates 13 and 14, theseparts being secured together by bolt means 15.

Casing section 10 houses an expansible chamber mechanism which is notspecifically illustrated because it may be entirely conventional andbecause it may be any one of several known types of such mechanisms.Examples of expansible chamber mechanisms are found in US. Pat. No.2,095,255 which discloses types having radially and axially movablepistons, US. Pat. No. 3,272,142 Which discloses a rotary piston orgerotor type and US. Pat. No. 2,169,456 which discloses axially movablepistons.

Casing section 11 is adjacent the expansible chamber mechanism housed bycasing section 10 and is referred to herein as a valve block 11. Casingsection 12 adjacent valve block 11 is cylindrically and annularly shapedand forms, with cover plate 14, a valve chamber 18 which houses acylindrically shaped valve 20.

The motor or expansible chamber device has a central, longitudinallyextending axis 21 and valve block 11 has a longitudinally extending bore22 having an axis which is coaxial With the axis 21. Valve block 11 hasa plurality of axially extending feeding and exhausting passages 24 to30 which are circumferentially arranged relative to the axis 21 andwhich have port openings in the annularly shaped fluid transfer surface32 of valve block 11. The passage arrangement comprising the passages 34to 30 is in itself old and is commonly used for feeding and exhaustingfluid to and from expansible chamber devices. Each such passagealternately has fluid flowing therethrough to the left to an expandingchamber and subsequently therethrough to the right while the samechamber is contracting or collapsing. Passages 24 to 30 will be referredto more in detail further on herein in connection with an explanation ofthe valve 20.

A shaft 34 is rotatably disposed within valve block bore 22 and isconnected to valve 20 in driving relation thereto. Valve 20 has a valveface 36 which engages the valve block fluid transfer surface 32. Valve20 is illustrated as being rotatably about the axis 21 but, as will beexplained further on, valve 20 may have diiferent forms of motion aswell as difierent configurations, within the scope of the invention. Asillustrated, however, a spline connection 38 is provided between valve20 and shaft 34 which facilitates the joint rotation of the shaft andvalve but allows the valve to be biased into sealing engagement with thevalve block 11 without any hindrance from the shaft.

A rotatable shaft 39 is drivingly connected to the expansible chambermeans (not shown) housed in the casing section 10 and may or may not,depending on the type of expansible chamber device being utilized, bedirectly connected to the shaft 34. Valve block 11 has radiallyextending inlet and outlet ports 40 and 41 which are reversible in thesense that either port 40 or 41 may be the inlet port so that theexpansible chamber device will be operated in one direction or the otherso that shaft 39 may be rotated in either direction as desired. Axiallyextending passages 44 and 45 respectively intersect ports or passages 40and 41 and have port openings in the annular fluid transfer surface 32of valve block 11 at different radial distances from the axis 21.

Valve 20'i's illustrated with a known type of fluid flow distribution.pattern. (referred to herein for convenience as FFDP) formed in thevalve face 36 as may be best seen in FIG. 2. The FFDP of any valve usedmust have separate and distinct fluid feeding and exhausting sectionsand either of such sections will be the feeding section (and the otherthe exhausting section) depending upon which of the ports 40 or 41 isthe inlet port. In valve 20, feeding and exhausting sections are formedwith two sections 50 and 51 which are recessed relative to thevalve-face 36. Assuming port 40 to be the inlet port, section 50 will bethe feeding section and section 51 will bethe exhausting section.Feeding section 50 is formed by the circular wall 52, and the radiallyoffset semicircular walls 53 and 54, and includes feeding port 44 withinits confines. Exhausting section 51 is formed by the walls 53 and .54and the central circular wall 55 which surrounds the end of shaft'34.Exhausting section 51 includes exhausting port 45 within its confines.

If port 40 is used as the inlet port, valve lock passages 40 and 44 andvalve section 50 form fluid inlet path means; concomitantly valvesection 51 and valve block passages 45 and 41 form fluid outlet pathmeans. If port 41 is used as the inlet port, valve block passages 41 and45 and valve section 51 form fluid inlet path means, concomitantly valvesection 50 and valve block passages 44 and 40 form fluid outlet pathmeans.

Upon valve 20 being rotated, and assuming port 40 is the inlet port, thepassages 24 to 30 which are within the confines of feeding section 50,will convey fluid from the port 40 to expanding chambers of theexpansible chamber device housed by casing section likewise the passages24 to 30 which are within the confines of exhausting section 51 willconvey fluid from the collapsing chambers of the expansible chamberdevice to the port 41.

It will be understood that the above described flow conditions would bereversed if port 41 were the inlet port and in that case the valvesection 51 would be the feeding section.

The description of the invention which follows is equally applicable tovarious other types of valve arrangements such as those disclosed in mypending patent applicationiSer. No. 670,962 filed Sept. 27, 1967 inwhich each of three valves disclosed therein has a different type orform of FFDP. Likewise shafts for driving the valve having other formsthan the disclosed shaft 34 may be utilized in well known ways dependingon the particular form of valve chosen. As a criteria it is onlyessential that the valve be free to be biased by pressure against thevalve block surface 32.

It may be. observed that pressurized fluid admitted through port 40 or.41 would flow to the recessed valve section 50 or 51-and the pressureexerted on the recessed area would tend to force the valve to the rightin a directionaway from the valve block 11. In accordance with theinvention, means are provided for admitting fluid to the chamber orspace 18 between the valve and the cover plate 14 which results in alarger net force, by reason of a relatively larger area of the back side58 of the valve being acted upon by pressurized fluid, which biases thevalve in the direction of the valve block 11. The spacing between theback side 58 of the valve 20 and the cover plate 14 is shown as beingrelatively large for the purpose of illustration but in practice suchspacing may be as small as a few thousandths of an inch or even lessthan a thousandth of an inch.

In the motor illustrated there are included threefunctionallyindependent systems for supplying pressurized fluid to thechamber 18 to the rear of valve 20. It will thus be understood that anyone of the three systems, or a combination of two of the systems, may beused to the exclusion of the others to pressurize the chamber 18.

The first valve biasing system comprises two passages 60 and 61 eachformed jointly in the valve block 11 and casing section 12 withpassages. 60 and 61 extending respectively from ports 40 and 41 to thespace in chamber 18 behind valve 20. Identically constructed checkvalves 62 and 63 are mounted respectively in passages 60 and 61 suchthat pressurized fluid may flow from either or both ports 40 and 41through the valves 61 and 62 to the chamber 18 but pressurized fluid isstopped from flowing from chamber 18 through the check valves 62 or 63to the passages 60 or 61. FIG. 4 shows check valve 62 in detail andcheck valve 63 is identical to check valve 62.

In the operation of a motor equipped with the first type of valvebiasing system, pressurized fluid is introduced through port 40 or 41depending on the direction of rotation desired for shaft 39. If thefluid is introduced through inlet port 40, valve section 50 ispressurized and, with the valve in its position as shown in FIG. 2,pressurized fluid would flow through passages 25 to 27 to expandingchambers of the expansible chamber device housed in casing section 10.concomitantly, fluid would flow from contracting chambers of said devicethrough passages 28 to 30 to the valve section 51 from which it wouldflow through the passage 45 to the outlet port 41. Shaft 34 and valve 20rotate in synchronism with the operation of the expansible chamberdevice and, as may be visualized by reference to FIG. 2, each of thepassages 24 to 30 communicates alternately with the valve sections 50and 51 and the passages 24 to 30' are sequentially fed and exhausted bythe valve sections 50 and 51.

Pressurized fluid in inlet port 40 enters passage 60 and flows throughthe check valve 62 into valve chamber 18 between the back side 58 of thevalve and cover plate 14. Check valve 63 prevents pressurized fluid fromentering passage 61 and the pressurized fluid acting on valve surface 58biases the valve into sealing engagement with the valve block 11. As thearea of each of the valve sections 50 and 51 is less than the area ofvalve side 58, there will always be a net force biasing the valve in thedirection of the valve block 11 even though the fluid pressure for valvesections 50 and 51 is substantially the same as the fluid pressure invalve chamber 18.

If it were desired to reverse the direction of rotation for shaft 39,pressurized fluid would be admitted to the inlet" port 41 andpressurized fluid would be admitted to valve chamber 18 through passage61 and check valve 63. Check valve 62 would prevent the entry ofpressurized fluid to passage 60.

The second version of the valve biasing system comprises passages and 71in valve 20 which extend respectively from the recessed surfaces of thevalve sections 50 and 51 to the back side 58 of valve 20. The passages70 and 71 have check valves 72 and 73 installed therein each allowingonly one way flow to the valve chamber 18. Check valves 72 and 73 may beidentical to check valve 62 shown in detail in FIG. 4.

Assuming that passages 60 and 61 and check valves 62 and 63 are notpresent or omitted, pressurized fluid in inlet port 40 flows throughvalve block passage 44 to valve section 50 and through passage 70 andcheck valve 72 to valve chamber 18. Check valve 73 prevents pressurizedfluid from entering passage 71 and the pressurized fluid acting on theback side valve surface 58 biases the valve into sealing engagement withthe valve block 11.

The area of each of the valve sections 50 and 51 being less than thearea of valve side 58 and there thus will always be a net force biasingthe valve in the direction of the valve block 11 even through the fluidpressure for valve sections 50 and 51 is substantially the same as thefluid pressure in valve chamber 18.

If it were desired to reverse the direction of rotation of shaft 39,pressurized fluid would be admitted to the inlet port 41 and pressurizedfluid would be admitted to valve chamber 18 through valve passage 71 andcheck valve 73. Check valve 72 would then prevent the entry ofpressurized fluid to passage 70.

Combinations of the first and second versions of the invention could beutilized in which either the passages associated with check valves 62and 73, on the one hand, or the passages associated with 63 and 72, onthe other hand, would provide a suitable valve biasing system withregard to pressurizing the valve chamber 18'.

The third version of valve biasing system comprises, as can be seen inFIG. 3, a passage -80 formed jointly in valve block 11 and casingsection 12 which extends from valve block passage 29 to the chamber 18.The passage 80 has a check valve 81 installed therein which allows one"way flow to the valve chamber 18. Check valve 81 may have the sameconstruction as the check valve 62 shown in FIG. 4. Assuming that thepassages (60; 61, 70, 71) and check valves (62, 63, 72, 73) of the firstand second valve biasing systems described above are not present,pressurized fluid introduced to either inlet port 50 or inlet port 41results, in accordance with the opperation of the motor as explainedabove, in each of the valve block passages 24 to 30 alternatelydirecting pressurized fluid to the expansible chamber device anddirecting spent, pressureless fluid away from said device. The FFDP ofvalve 20 causes valve block passage 29 to be pressurized anddepressurized during each revolution of the valve 20 and, during thepressurization thereof, fluid tends to flow from passage 29 throughpassage 80 and check valve 81 to valve chamber 18 behind valve 20. Whenvalve block passage 29 is depressurized the check valve 81 preventsfluid in chamber 18 from entering passage 80. The pressurized fluid inchamber 18 biases valve 20 towards valve block 11 in the same manner aswith the first and second valve biasing systems described above. Thepassage 80 could be connected with any one of the other valve blockpassages 24 to 28 or 30 also and it is only incidental that it isillustrated as being connected to the valve block passage 29.

As valve block passage 29 is only alternately pressurized, valve chamber18 is not subjected to a constantly applied pressure as in the cases ofthe above described first and second valve biasing systems. A form of anaccumulator or some other kind of energy storing device could beprovided for chamber 18 so that a substantially constant pressure wouldbe maintained in chamber 18 despite the fact that passage 80 would beonly alternately pressurized by valve block passage 29. Alternatively,all of the valve block passages could be provided with check valveequipped passages leading to valve chamber .18 to maintain a constantpressure therein and in that case an accumulator device would not beneeded.

Fluid tight casing plugs 90 are illustrated but it will be understoodthat they have no particular significance other than to permitconventional drilled through holes for the fluid passages.

I claim:

1. A fluid pressure operated device of the expansible chamber typecomprising a casing, a valve block having a fluid transfer surface, saidvalve block having a pinrality of expansible chamber feeding andexhausting passages having openings in said transfer surface, a valvehaving a first'surface engaging said transfer surface, said valve firstsurface being recessed to form reversible feeding and exhaustingsections, reversible inlet and outlet passages in said valve blockhaving openings in said transfer surface and respective constant fluidcommunication with said feeding and exhausting sections of said valve,said valve being cyclically movable relative to said transfer surfacewith said feeding and exhausting sections thereof sequentially feedingand exhausting said expansible chamber passages, said valve having asecond surface on the opposite side thereof from said first surface, avalve biasing pressure chamber formed by an internal surface of saidcasing and said second valve surface, passage means between at least oneof said expansible chamber passages and said pressure chamber, checkvalve means for said passage means allowing fluid therein to flow inonly one direction to said pressure chamber for biasing said valvetowards said valve block transfer surface, said valve biasing pressurechamber having no openings other than openings for said check valvemeans, and drive means attached to said valve and extending in adirection away from said valve biasing pressure chamber, said secondvalve surface being between said drive means and said valve biasingpressure chamber.

2. A fluid pressure operated device of the expansible chamber typecomprising a casing, a valve block having a fluid transfer surface, saidvalve block having a plurality of expansible chamber feeding andexhausting passages having openings in said transfer surface, a valvehaving a first surface engaging said transfer surface, said valve firstsurface being recessed to form a [reversible] feeding [and exhaustingsections] section, [reversible] an inlet [and outlet passages] passagein said valve block having [openings] an opening in said transfersurface and [respective] constant fluid communication with said feeding[and exhausting sections] section of said valve, said valve block inletpassage and said valve feeding section forming fluid inlet path means,[said valve block outlet passage and said valve exhausting sectionforming fluid outlet path means,] said valve being cyclically movablerelative to said transfer surface with said feeding [and exhaustingsections] section thereof sequentially feeding [and exhausting] saidexpansible chamber passages, means for sequentially exhausting saidexpansible chamber passages, said valve having a second surface on theopposite side thereof from said first surface, a valve biasing pressurechamber formed by an internal surface of said casing and said secondvalve surface, passage means between [each of] said fluid inlet [andoutlet] path means and said pressure chamber check valve means] for[said passage means] allowing fluid therein to flow [in only onedirection] to said pressure chamber for biasing said valve towards saidvalve block transfer surface, [said valve biasing pressure chamberhaving no openings other than openings for said check valve means,] saidvalve being the only cyclically movable member with which pressurizedfluid in said chamber has contact, and drive means attached to saidvalve and extending in a direction away from said valve biasing pressurechamber, said second valve surface being between said drive means andsaid valve biasing pressure chamber.

3. A fluid pressure operated device of the expansible chamber typecomprising a casing, a valve block having a fluid transfer surface, saidvalve block having a plurality of expansible chamber feeding andexhausting passages having openings in said transfer surface, a valvehaving a first surface engaging said transfer surface, said valve firstsurface being recessed to form reversible feeding and exhaustingsections, reversible inlet and outlet passages in said valve blockhaving openings in said transfer surface and respective constant fluidcommunication with said feeding and exhausting sections of said valve,said valve block inlet passage and said valve feeding section formingfluid inlet path means, said valve block outlet passage and said valveexhausting section forming fluid outlet path means, said valve beingcyclically movable relative to said transfer surface with 'said feedingand exhausting sections thereof sequentially feeding and exhausting saidexpansible chamber passages, said valve having a second surface on theopposite side thereof from said first surface, a valve biasing pressurechamber formed by an internal surface of said casing and said secondvalve surface, passage means between each of said fluid inlet and outletpath means and said pressure chamber, check valve means for said passagemeans allowing fluid therein to flow in only one direction to saidpressure chamber for biasing said valve towards said valve block transfer surface, said valve biasing pressure chamber having no openingsother than openings for said check valve means, and drive means attachedto said valve and extending in a direction away from said valve biasingpressure chamber, said second valve surface being be- References CitedThe following references, cited by the Examiner, are of record in thepatented file of this patent or the original patent.

, UNITED STATES PATENTS 7/ 1956 ,Ainsworth ',-a 91180 5/1959 Pettibone,.418133 2/1961 Kohtaki 91180 5/1961 Budzich -91.485 12/1964 Martin418133 Schottler 91-7485 JOHN J. YRABLIK, Primary Exarnine'r U.S. C1.X.R.

